Rajya Sabha MPs Suresh Gopi and Rajiv Chandrasekher, a Malayalee elected from Karnataka, are said to be in race for a Cabinet berth.

With Union Cabinet reshuffle talks gaining momentum, a senior BJP leader has said that Kerala will get a representation in the Council of Ministers in the next rejig.

"The BJP leadership has agreed to give Kerala representation in the Union Cabinet," news agency IANS quoted a sources on terms of anonymity.

The source said that BJP president Amit Shah was determined to see the party open its account in the 2019 general election from the state. Kerala has 20 Lok Sabha and nine Rajya Sabha seats.

According to the report, Rajya Sabha MPs Suresh Gopi and Rajiv Chandrasekher, a Malayalee elected from Karnataka, are said to be in race for a Cabinet berth.

BJP veteran O Rajagopal became the first party leader to get elected to the Kerala assembly in 2016.

Following the declaration of Assembly election results earlier this month and PM Narendra Modi’s decision to shift former Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar to Goa, there is buzz of a major rejig of the Union Cabinet.

According to media reports, a major rejig in the Council of Ministers is on the cards. If reports are to be believed, PM Modi may undertake a Cabinet reshuffle after the Budget Session, which concludes on April 12.

A reshuffle was necessitated to fill up vacancies including at the South Block as well as to induct some fresh faces.